Changes In La Push
by Blonde.Ambitions
Summary: Holly Chance moves to her father's old home town after the death of her mother. There she meets new and exciting people, namely one Jacob Black. She knows that her new friends are hiding something from her, but what? Please read and review! Rewrite.
1. Chapter 1: Arrival

**Changes In La Push**

**Author's Note:**

Hi all. So this is a sequel type thing of Twilight, following the story of Holly Chance and Jacob Black. For this sequel to work, I've obviously had to change bits of the original story so that my parts of the story can fit in. Edward and Bella won't feature in it, neither will their daughter. Jacob is not imprinted with anybody, for now at least! For my own peace of mind, I also changed some of the characters slightly, mostly just their appearances, but also their ages and sometimes how they act, etc. Sorry if you don't like how I've done this, but I'm happy with it right now, and that's enough for me. I don't really think you need to know anything about the Twilight Saga, it's a standalone story in my opinion. I'm enjoying writing it and hope that you like reading it. I won't know if you are enjoying the story unless you leave a review, so please do!

Blonde Ambitions.

P.S. I am from the United Kingdom, and seeing as this story is set in the US, I'll do my best to generalise all the words I use. Sorry if there's any confusion. Ask me anything you need!

**Chapter One: Arrival**

So this was it, I thought, taking the in the small house in front of me. My dad pulled into the driveway and cut the engine. This was the house that I was planning to live in for ten months and twentynine days – until my eighteenth birthday. The area that we were moving into was a small recreational ground, called La Push, near the miniscule town of Forks. You can tell that I was not impressed. After Mom's death, Dad thought we should get away from our old town, old city, old life and start again. About two weeks into our search for a new place to stay, someone from Dad's childhood town and one of his old friends, wrote to him to offer his condolences about Mom, but also to tell him that there was a house in the area that he could have. Dad was really excited about this for some reason. He accepted the offer really quickly. We stayed at our old place for about four more months while schools, work and other boring stuff was sorted out. I wasn't exactly over the moon about leaving my old life and my friends and whatever, but I knew that Dad wanted this a lot and I could see his reasoning. Everywhere I looked in our old place, I could see Mom there too. In the kitchen, she was there making her amazing lasagne. In the lounge, she was there too, watching her stupid soaps. It was killing me, but at the same time, I couldn't leave without kicking up a bit of a fuss, Holly Chance style.

It was the first time I had seen our new house. It was a bit run down...to say the least.

"Dad...seriously?" I said, my eyebrows raised. "You left Washington to come and live here?"

My father looked at me. "It'll be nice. We can work on it and it will look brand new."

I studied the front of the building again. If I screwed up my eyes and tilted my head a bit, then it looked cute. I conceded defeat. "Fine, it'll be nice...but you're doing the DIY. I get the painting jobs. Do we have a deal?"

Dad smiled. He turned to look at the house too. The smile faded. "Come on, Hol, let's go." He got out the car and went to open the door to the house. He turned back to shout out. "Hurry up. You might want a bit of rest before we go over to Billy's house. It'll be good for you to meet some new people here. I heard he has a son about your age."

I rolled my eyes. This was so typical of my father - trying to make me friends with people. I got out the car and looked around the surrounding area. It was mostly green and woody. It was pretty, I guess, but I wasn't in the mood. Long car journeys made me grumpy. This car journey had been about five hours. So I was pretty grumpy. And the fact that Dad had pretty much forced into talking to some guy I didn't know was making the situation worse. I was probably the world's worst person at talking to people I didn't know. I didn't have very high hopes for the dinner.

X

The house was light and airy. It smelt a bit weird...like dogs? My room was right at the top of the house, in the loft. The room had been furnished a couple of weeks back when my dad came down here with the removal van. It was a spacious room, but that might just be because it didn't have that much in it. I lay back on the bed, still fully clothed and shoed and just stared at the ceiling.

X

"Holly?" My dad said from the door. "Wake up, we have thirty minutes until we need to leave."

I grunted my acknowledgement and stretched, yawned and swung my legs over to the side of the bed. I heard Dad walk back down the stairs and I stood up. I rummaged through my suitcase to find some fresh clothes. I doubt this Billy would want to see me in old, worn, baggy tracksuits and a huge t-shirt that said 'DON'T NEED A LISCENSE FOR THESE GUNS' with two arrows pointing to...well you get the idea. I found a red and black lumberjack shirt and some back skinnies. I laced up my Dr. Martens and stared at myself in the mirror. My skin was tan, but a lot paler than it had been. I had ugly dark circles under my eyes that made me look seventy, not seventeen. My hair was a tangled heap tied up on top of my head. My eyes looked dead. All in all, not a good look for me. I sighed and took out my hairbrush. It took about ten minutes to completely de-tangle my hair, and then I used a ton of makeup to cover up my face. After I had finished, I padded down the stairs and found my dad waiting for me.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

I nodded my head. "As I'll ever be."

X

The car journey was short, only about ten minutes, but for the whole drive I was worrying about meeting these new people. Dad was talking about his childhood with Billy, but I wasn't really listening. We arrived at their house. It was nicer than ours; way better condition and slightly bigger. A man with long black hair, and an American Indian look about him (a bit like Dad) was sitting on the porch. When he didn't get up, I looked closer and saw he was in a wheelchair. The man, who I presumed to be Billy, turned his head to face the door and a minute later, a younger man came out. When I say a younger man, I mean someone about year or two older than me. He was good looking, even I could admit, although I tried not to think too much about that. He had short, black, spiky hair, that seemed to stick up haphazardly, as if he had been running his hands through it. He had the same olive coloured skin as me, with dark eyes and a strong build. I could see a tattoo showing from under the ripped sleeves of his shirt. He looked just as happy as I was to be meeting a new family...not at all. Dad pretty much jumped out of the car and leaped across the short distance to the porch. He hugged the supposed Billy, who wrapped his arm around Dad's shoulders. The smile that he gave my dad knocked about ten years off his face. The younger guy, who I guessed was Jacob, Billy's son, looked on awkwardly. His piercing gaze flicked up to meet mine, his eyes chocolately and deep. He didn't smile or make any other welcoming gesture. I felt my eyes burning, I couldn't look at him anymore and I averted my gaze, slightly embarrassed. He seemed kind of rude and I decided not to talk to him unless I was specifically asked. My dad and Billy were engrossed in conversation with each other, not noticing Jacob or me. My dad turned around though soon. Dad beckoned me over and Billy smiled at me warmly.

"You must be Holly," he said cheerfully.

I forced a smile on my face (though in reality, I wanted to run far, far away). "Yeah...Billy, right? Nice to meet you. My dad's told me so much about you."

"Only the good things, I hope! Come on over here so I can see you properly. My, don't you look like your father?" he mused. "This is Jacob, my son. I think he's about your age...what are you now? Eighteen?"

"In December," I said.

Billy smiled. "I'm sure that you and Jake don't want to hear me and your father catching up with each other. Jake, take Holly off somewhere, but be back by eight, alright? I want dinner on the table by half past," Billy said to my dad, seeming to lose interest in me and Jacob.

I made my way up the porch stairs and held out my hand for Jacob to shake. "Hi," I said gravely, without much enthusiasm.

He just nodded, and I retracted my hand and shoved it deep into my pockets. I stared at the ground for a bit, but then he said, "Come this way. I'll take you to my workshop."

I tried to smile a bit. "Cool. What is it that you make?"

"Actually, I just mess around with bikes," he said still not looking at me. He led the way round to the back of the house, and down a lane. At the end of the lane was a small shed – like building.

Great, I thought, as I dutifully followed him down the road. This was going to be hell...what did I know about bikes? Nothing.

Inside the building, there was a strong sense of oil. It was too dark to see anything in the shed, until Jacob turned on the light. There were about five motorbikes. There were tools on the floor and on wooden benches that lined the walls of the outhouse. It was messy. There were overalls hanging inside out on pegs that hung on the walls. Oil and gas cans littered the floor. The bikes, however, were sparkling clean and pristine. They shone in the dim light, the paintwork like mirrors. Jacob walked around the bikes for a moment, stopping at a red one that had tools scattered around it. He crouched down beside it, making himself comfortable, leaving me guessing that we would be here for a while. I took a seat on one of the nearby benches, curling my legs underneath me.

"So Jacob," I said, "Is this what you do in your spare time?" I was trying to make conversation and escape the ever increasing awkward silence that seemed to be Jacob's idea of communication.

"Yeah," was his short reply. He was now fiddling around with a spanner on the bike, turning it repeatedly. Seeing as he was obviously not going to be talking voluntarily any time soon, I decided to amuse myself and look around his workshop. There was a desk and a notice board, and not much else, so I walked over to the notice board first. As I walked past him, I noticed Jacob was now lying on his back on the floor and that his t-shirt had ridden up a bit, giving a teasing glimpse of a toned and tanned torso. Blushing, I turned my gaze away quickly. Wait, blushing? I never blushed...why start now?

The notice board was covered with slips of paper, mementos, tickets and other bit and pieces. There was a photo of a girl; pretty, slim and with gorgeous dark hair. She looked the same age as Jake, a bit older than me. She had a smile on her face, but her dark eyes looked sad.

"Who's this?" I tried again to make another stab at conversation.

Jacob rolled himself out from under the bike and looked at the board. When he saw what I was looking at, his face grew dark and got up. He snatched the photo of the notice board, tearing it slightly in the process, and threw it in the trash can. "No-one," he growled menacingly. He moved back to the bike and slid under it again.

Oh man, this was tough...but I was determined to stick it out for Dad. "I'm just going to sit here," I said, pointing at the desk chair.

"Whatever. Just don't touch my papers."

Patronizing or what? But I nodded, and looked to see these papers on the old wood desk. There were long calculations on huge sheets of paper, which made my eyes go fuzzy. The thought that the guy was autistic ran through my mind, but I discounted that one because his dad wouldn't have made him look after me if he was autistic. That would just be cruel. Then I realised that it must be because he didn't like me. I suddenly felt really awkward sitting there. The silence felt thick and tense. I looked around for any sort of distraction, until my eyes finally settled on the clock on the wall. I was relieved to find that it was nearly eight.

"Um, Jacob?" I began, looking back at him, under the bike. I had to pause for a moment because my tongue decided to tie itself into a knot. Jacob was on his back, arms outstretched, his shirt ridden up over his taut abs. "...uhh, I mean, it's nearly eight...we should probably be getting back to have dinner right?" I said, trying to drag my eyes away from his chest. Jacob slid out from underneath the bike and stood up, stretching awkwardly.

"Sure," he said and began to stride out the door.

After a moment, I realised I needed to follow him quickly because I wouldn't be able to find my way back to the house in the dark. This guy, Jacob, must have anger issues or something. He was not what I needed right now and he evidently didn't want me around. As I neared the house, about two metres away from Jacob, I heard laughter through the open window. I sighed in my head. As much as I was going to hate being around this crazy bipolar kid, I knew that even me, Holly Chance, with the heart of stone, wouldn't be able to take this new found happiness away from my dad.

"Hey," Jacob called from the door. "I can't wait here all day. Come this way."

I rolled my eyes at stuck out my tongue when his back was turned.

X

Inside the dining room, we were greeted by smiles from our fathers.

"Just in time!" said Billy. He wheeled himself over to the lowered work unit, where there were four plates set out, near an oven which was, by now, producing delicious fishy smells. "I hope you're all hungry," Billy continued, over the loud noise of clattering plates and the slamming of oven doors. Jacob stood and went to hover behind his father, trying to lift plates and open doors. Billy frowned and waved a hand, motioning his son to sit down and leave him alone. "Sit down Jake," he said, voice slightly lowered. "I can manage." I guess Billy just didn't want to look weak in front of my dad (who, I was proud to admit, looked to be in pretty good shape).

Billy brought the plates over to the table, and said, "You lot had better appreciate all this. I was fishing for hours for these beauties. And I spent ages peeling these disgustingly healthy vegetables. Well, what are you waiting for? Tuck in!"

We ate quietly for a bit; I was absolutely famished. Then, my dad said, "So Holly, how've you and Jacob been getting on?" He was grinning, expectant, waiting for a positive answer. I couldn't tell him that I hated all this socialising and that his oldest friend's son was a complete nutter.

"It's going great, Dad," I lied, with a smile. "Jacob showed me his bike shed...it was real...interesting." I peeked a look at Jacob through a sheet of my wavy hair, expecting an awkward look, or guilt, or maybe even anger. Instead I saw him smiling politely, yet still clearly out of his own free will. I noticed that it made him look far more attractive and younger, more like his own age. Although I could hardly pass any judgement on acting my own age. This was my first night out in ages, and my dad had arranged it. Now _that_ was embarrassing.

About two hours later, we had all moved into the Black's sitting room. It had been a really nice dinner, not awkward at all. Billy was friendly and I could see why he and dad were friends; they were so alike. Jacob had hardly talked to me at all (except to say thank you when I passed him things and stuff like that), but I really didn't mind that.

On our way out the house, I realised I had left my phone on the table by my chair. I told dad to start up the car, while I ran back and got it. When I re-exited the house, Jacob was no longer there. As I passed by Billy, saying good night, Billy caught my wrist.

"Holly," he said, "You and Jake seemed to get along well."

I was caught in a dilemma, not entirely sure whether or not to lie. I decided on the latter, just because I really didn't want to disappoint Billy.

"Sure," I said finally.

"Good, good," said Billy. "Well, it would please me very much if you two could be friends? I'm sure your dad would appreciate that too."

He let my arm go, and I walked to the car. I wasn't entirely sure if I really did want to be Jacob's friend and I was certain the feeling was mutual. Jacob didn't seem to like me at all. Although this wasn't what was bothering me. I had the weird feeling that Billy wasn't telling me something. Call it intuition if you want, but my intuition was rarely wrong.

X

When we got back to our house, Dad was strangely cheerful. "Well that was great, wasn't it?" He smiled. "Jacob seemed a nice boy. You get along alright?"

Thing is, I hardly ever lied to my dad. But, there went nothing; "Yeah, he seems cool. But...uh, dad," I began, "Is he like autistic or something? Only just, he didn't seem very talkative. And he was a right grouch," I added, muttering the last sentence under my breath.

My dad laughed, then stopped to say, "Actually now you mention it...I think Billy did say something about him being really hung up about some girl." That would fit, I thought, as I remembered the picture of the girl. "Apparently, they were as close as anything for a while, then some guy from Forks went off with her, and they got married. Strange story if you ask me." It was weird, but I felt like my dad was avoiding telling me something. I didn't push the subject though, and he continued, "Billy told me that Jacob ran off somewhere for a while, not telling anyone where he was going. And there was no communication. That was very odd..." he trailed off. "But you shouldn't let that put you off him!" Dad had cheered up again. "You two look like you'd get on well. He's probably just shy like you are."

"Alright dad!" I said, "I get it! I know you want me to get a life again. I'm working on it, I mean, it's not I've only been here for a whole evening."

My dad just laughed, saying, "You know, we should have done this sooner."

"Done what?"

"Went out a bit, let our hair down, had some fun. It's what your mother would've wanted."

"Hmm. Anyway, it's late, and I'm dead tired. I'm heading up to bed, see you tomorrow," I said, kissing his cheek.

"Night sweetheart," he replied.

X

Next morning, I woke up at 6.32. Precisely. I know this because that is the time I wake up every morning. It's the same time that I was shaken awake by my dad to be told that my mum had passed. Now it was like an eternal reminder that I wasn't there to say goodbye. I can never go back to sleep again after waking up so I spent the next three hours reading until I felt that it was a normal hour to get up. Dad was downstairs already.

"Hey honey, sleep well?" He asked me with a smile.

"Yeah. I'm hungry."

"Alright, alright! Wait five minutes. Can you do me a favour after breakfast?"

I looked at him warily. "That depends what the favour is."

"I want you to go to the High Street and get me some stuff. Would that be alright, your highness?"

I laughed. "Yes, that would be alright...I suppose."

X

I got into my car (that had been sent over yesterday with the last of our furniture). It was a vintage Gullwing, old and battered, but I loved it. Dad's list was in my pocket. He just wanted the basics and he assured me that I would find it in the grocery store.

It didn't take long to get to the High Street, if you could call it that. Compared to the High Streets I knew, in the city, this was pitiful. The road was about 100 metres long, a whole six shops making up the stores on offer. It was like a toy town compared to what I was used to. There was a general grocery store, a diner, drug store, book store, clothes store, a motor store (plus garage) and a weird, tiny little shop. This last building was intriguing. I couldn't see what it was selling inside the shop, because it was too dark to see into it. Forgetting about Dad's shopping for a while, I decided to take a look inside.

When I opened the door, a bell jangled loudly. I hated those things. It was alerting people to, well, me and I would much rather prefer to remain invisible. I began to look around the shop. It was a bit musky and slightly dusty, there were only a few light beams shining through the grimy windows. The shop was selling dream – catchers, carved wooden models (mostly wolves) and little painted landscapes. It was sort of American – Indian. I loved that sort of stuff and these had a really cute homemade feel about them. A door opened at the back of the shop, and a girl slipped over behind the counter.

"Hey," she greeted me. "Can I help you?"

"No, I'm just looking around for a bit, thanks," I replied, eyeing the girl cautiously.

She was pretty, tall, slim build, around my age – probably a bit older. She had jet black hair, caramel coloured skin, like Dad, Billy and Jacob. I could see a theme coming on. Although, strangely, this girl had bright blue eyes. They were looking at me curiously as she asked,

"I hope you don't mind me asking, but are you Holly Chance?"

I was now even more cautious. Why and how did she know me? "Yes, I am. And you are...?"

The girl smiled. "I'm Leah Clearwater. You won't know me, but we know lots about you. Billy's been talking non-stop about you and your father."

I nodded, understanding now. "I see. So...you live in La Push then?"

Leah smiled to herself as if she knew something that I didn't. "Yes, I live here. My family have lived here for generations. Are you enjoying it? La Push, I mean."

I nodded, uncomfortably realising that that was a bit of a lie. If Jacob was anything to go by, then La Push and me weren't going to get along very well, although this Leah seemed quite nice.

"Yeah, it's nice. I haven't seen that much of it-"

"Not that there's much to see," cut in Leah.

I laughed. "And I haven't met anyone except you and Jacob and Billy. I'm not very good at socialising though, so I don't really think that I'll meet that many people anyway."

"I get it," said Leah. "But you're my friend now."

I smiled, a little awkwardly, at how forward Leah was, but I liked it – it was refreshing.

"In fact, come over to my place. About seven, say? I want to show you around La Push. That'll probably take about five minutes and then we can hang by the lake or something. Would that be alright?"

I shrugged. "I've got nowhere else to be."

"Cool. So...see you at seven then." She then added hopefully, "Are you going to buy anything?"

I looked around the shop, eyeing the dream catcher that had caught my eye when I'd first entered the shop. I pointed at it and handed Leah the right amount of cash. She told me how to get to her house, then I waved goodbye and walked out the shop.

Although I'd never thought I'd admit it, I was glad to have someone who could be my friend. Remembering Dad's shopping, I went into the general grocery store and bought everything off the list. At the counter, I had to go through another round of "Are you Holly Chance?" and "We've heard all about you", but I eventually escaped.

When I got home, I told Dad about Leah.

"Oh yeah, the Clearwaters. I know Tom well," said Dad, with a nostalgic smile. "That's great honey. I'm real glad you have a friend."

I had thought he was going to pee his pants with excitement at the mention of a friend. I got the rare feeling that I had made my Dad really proud and happy. I liked it.


	2. Chapter 2: A Friend

**Changes In La Push**

**Chapter Two: A Friend**

It was seven o'clock. I was on time, as always. But I was still sitting in my car, across the dirt track from Leah's house. The house was like ours, just bigger – probably because they had more family. After five more minutes of waiting in my car, I decided to get out and actually knock on the door.

There was music coming out of an open window. It was indie music, and I was impressed at the rare good choice of music. I hardly ever agreed with other peoples' tastes in music. I had to knock loudly on the door.

I heard the thudding of feet coming down the stairs (I have good hearing) and sure enough, the door was opened, but not by Leah. It was a guy a couple of years younger than me. He looked very like Leah, so I realised it must be her brother or something.

"Hey, you must Holly. Come in." I entered the house. "I'm Seth, her brother. Leah's still getting ready upstairs. Her room is the third on the right." Then he added darkly, "The one with all the music."

"Thanks," I said, and ascended the stairs. The first door I came to was shut, but the second was open. I was feeling nosy, so I looked inside. There were three guys, lounging about in the room, which I'm guessing was Seth's bedroom. And Holy Sweet Baby Jesus, Jacob was lying on the bed. I was about to sneak off before he could see me, when his gaze suddenly flickered upwards. I tried to walk away, but I found I couldn't. We continued staring at each other until the other two guys looked up too. And boy, were they fit!

"Hi there," said one of them. "...And who are you?"

It was quite refreshing to have met someone who didn't know me before I knew them. I finally seemed to be able to break away from Jacob's lethal stare and I turned to look at the speaker instead. I was about to tell the guy who I was when Jacob spoke instead.

"It's Bob Chance's daughter."

"I'm Holly," I added, not allowing Jacob to do all the talking for me.

There was a brief pause in the room, but then the guy started talking again. "Oh yeah. We've heard about you. I'm Embry, this is Quil and that old grouch is Jacob."

Quil waved and I smiled back. "Actually I've already met Jacob," I said to Embry.

Embry and Quil looked at each other, then Embry covered it up and said to Jacob, "Jake man, why didn't you tell me that you'd met a girl?"

I noticed the opportunity to tease Jacob and get him back for snubbing me at his place. A sly grin crept onto my face. "Oh yeah, I've met Jacob. In fact, I had dinner with him...and he showed me all his bikes... Didn't you Jacob?" There was a coy look on my face as I faced Jacob, who was looking stunned.

Embry and Quil turned shocked, but amused faces to their friend.

"Jake? What the hell?"

I laughed loudly. Then there was a hand on my back and I spun round to see Leah. She was grinning too. "Come on Holly, let's leave Jacob to clear that one up. I've left my bag in my room, just let me get it. Hang on."

I waited in the hall for a moment until Leah came out of her room. This was at the same time that her brother was about to enter his room, carrying a tray of drinks. Leah paused outside her brother's room and said "Seth?"

Her brother's head popped back out of the door. I was busy trying to avoid Jacob's eyes, but I saw Embry looking at me.

"What?" said Seth ungraciously to his sister.

"I'm going out with Holly for a bit. Can you please behave until we get back. I'm not sure what time that will be."

Seth rolled his eyes. "I'm sixteen not six. I'll be fine."

Leah narrowed her eyes. "I think I'd trust you a bit more if you _were_ six years old."

"Whatever. See you in a bit," said Seth grumpily.

"Bye Holly!" called Embry from the room. I smiled and waved, a blush creeping onto my cheeks as, when I walked down the stairs, I heard woops and wolf whistles.

"Okay!" Leah yelled up the stairs. "Try to keep your hands out your pants!" Then, to me, she said with a grin, "Are you ready? Leah's Tour Bus of La Push leaves in one minute!"

X

"Right," said Leah, when we were out of the house. "This is what we're going to do. There's a diner on the High Street. We'll go there first. Then I'll show you the woods and I'll show you how to get to Forks. The shops are slightly more decent there...but only slightly. I can introduce you to a few people while we're out. I'll take you to the lake as well."

"Sounds good," I said. Leah sure was full on, but I quite liked that. I didn't like to talk all the time and it was quite clear that Leah did.

"Here's the diner," Leah said, after about ten minutes of us both walking, her talking and me listening. She was funny and had me laughing as she told me stories about her and her brother trying to liven up La Push. She pointed to the building that we were now standing outside of.

The Rusty Fork Diner (seriously) was quite...unique. Inside, there were paintings and dream catchers hung up all over the place. It smelt like a mix of dogs (I could see another correlation there too) and burning incense. There were loads of bean bags and comfy chairs instead of the usual hard back ones. The fabrics must have been colourful once, but were now faded and slightly dirty. The overall look of the diner was homey, but not really a place where I would trust someone to make me a good meal on a clean plate and give me a drink in a clean glass. Seeing my doubtful expression, Leah assured me, saying, "It's not as bad as it looks. They make good food and I've yet to find a place that makes better coffee than here."

I perked up at the sound of coffee. I loved coffee. As in _loved_ it – I couldn't get enough of the stuff.

"So, I've been thinking – what we'll do is have a drink and then we'll carry on. Does that sound fine?"

"Sure," I said, nodding dutifully, not wanting to go against her.

We ordered our coffee and Leah introduced me to the waitress (Chloe) who was serving us. We got the drinks, and, God, Leah wasn't lying – the coffee was amazing.

I could have stayed there longer, but Leah announced that we were going to continue the tour.

Outside, she led me down an adjoining street. "My car should be parked somewhere around here somewhere...where did I leave it?" A moment later, she cried, "Aha! Here we are."

I looked where her gaze was directed. My eyes widened when they were met with a vibrant green Volkswagen Beetle. Leah dragged me over to it.

"Here we go. I'm gonna show you the woods."

We drove for a while, chatting about how our final years of school had been and other small talk. There was a precarious yellow sign, barely hanging from the beams at the clearing that served as an entrance. It read 'La Push Wood'.

I was sure I had seen it somewhere, but I couldn't place it. I thought it might've been in a dream. "I think I've seen this place before."

Leah pulled up, then looked at me intently. "What?"

I pointed through the windscreen at the wood. "Yeah, I recognise that yellow sign."

Leah frowned. "Well, I wouldn't go in there alone if I were you. There's...dangerous animals in there."

Now it was my turn to frown. "Dangerous animals? Like what?"

Leah shrugged evasively. "Oh like...wolves and stuff."

"Wolves?"

Leah grinned. "Yeah...y'know...they're hairy creatures, like big dogs and they have really sharp teeth."

I laughed. "I was just wondering, that's all. I've never seen a live wolf."

"Really? Well they're quite common around these parts. You're dad will know how to deal with them, so I wouldn't worry. But don't go asking for trouble by going in there, okay?"

"I guess," I said. But this had sparked my curiosity. The woods had implanted a seed in my brain now.

"Anyway," said Leah, starting up the car again. "Next stop is the lake."

X

We drew up alongside a mountain of earth, rubble and sand, behind which was the lake that I could just about see from my bedroom window. The water was calm, and a very deep blue in colour. On the far side of the beach cove, there was a small bonfire, around which were four figures.

"Oh great," I heard Leah mutter. "We've got some company," she said to me.

She parked the car by the mound and got out the car. "Come on," she said, rather resignedly. "You've got to meet them sooner or later."

I followed a bit behind Leah as she walked over to where the group of guys were. I was seriously beginning to doubt whether there were any other girls in the town, except for me and Leah.

Before we had come close enough to be heard, I saw a couple of the group look up. They angled their heads strangely, their noses pointing high into the air. It reminded of an animal hunting. I wasn't entirely comfortable with it all – it somehow looked menacing.

"Hi Leah," one of them called. Then he added, "And friend."

"Hey guys," she said. I wasn't sure, but her voice sounded...wary, perhaps? I had been sure that they wouldn't be able to see me and that I could escape from yet more introductions. "This is Holly Chance."

They all turned to look at me. "Hi," I said quietly.

"Hi Holly," said the voice nearest to me. I had to do my best of not face palm myself...all the guys in this weird little town were far too attractive for their own good. He had wavy dark brown hair that hung down carelessly over his eyes. He was smiling at me, his teeth dazzling white against his tan skin. "I'm Paul Keane. It's really nice to meet you." His voice was rich and deep, like a mix of chocolate and honey.

I didn't reply and Leah decided to fill the silence. "That's Paul, that's Tyler, that's Fisher and...er...this is Sam," she said, rushing through the last introduction. It was like she was hiding something. Again. Deja vu. "Yeah, well...so I thought I could just introduce Holly to you all and now I have, we'll be going."

Sam looked up at her. "So soon?" He sounded disappointed at hearing this.

I saw Leah hesitate. For the first time, she didn't seem to know what to say. "Oh...okay then...well, maybe we can stay for a bit longer...just a...just a bit." She sat down on the sand with a bump, a slight defeated look on her face. Her eyes kept shifting to and from Sam and I realised there must have been some history between them both.

I sat down slowly too, following Leah's example. Paul took a seat next to me and I felt my legs turn to goo. I was thankful to be sitting rather than standing. "So Holly," he said to me. "How are you liking La Push?"

"It's cool," I said shyly. "I only got here a couple of days ago, but it's good."

"Well, we like it. Have you met many people?"

I shook my head. "Not really. I met you guys and Leah, obviously...her brother, Embry, Quil and Jacob and his dad. I've not really met anyone else properly."

Paul looked interested. "You've already met Jacob, huh? Was he as grumpy as he usually is?"

I smiled. "Well, if he normally acts like a spoilt kid, then yeah, he was."

Paul looked down at his hands, with an amused grin on his face. "So you didn't like him then?"

I blinked. "Like him? As in _like_ him?" With hindsight, this probably wasn't the most intelligent and mature answer I could have given Paul. "What I mean is...I just don't know him very well. And anyway, he's really not my type."

"Alright," said Leah from my other side. "I think it's time for us to go, Holly." She was giving Paul a very stern glare that seemed to be even scarier with her icy blue eyes.

Leah stood up and pulled me with her. She turned to walk back the way we came. "Bye," I said to Paul, sort of surprising myself with my lack of shyness. Paul smiled casually and waved back at me. "See you around, Holly Chance."

In the car, I asked Leah, "Why did you want to leave so quick?"

Leah didn't mean my eye and I knew she was evading the answer when she said, "It was time for us to go. Hey Holly...d'you wanna stay over tonight?"

I blinked and Leah continued. "My parents are out and Seth's mates are probably going to be there until late. I could do with some saner company."

I still wasn't replying.

Leah looked slightly disgruntled and apologetic. "You don't have to if you don't want. I know you're quite shy-"

"No!" I said quickly. "I do want to come round. I just don't normally get asked to stay longer with people...they're normally quite quick to get rid of me!" I smiled.

So did Leah and she said, "Well, Holly Chance, I like you!"

X

At the house, Leah's great indie music had been replaced by blaring rock music. Leah and I exchanged an unimpressed glance at each other. In that moment, it felt as if I'd known Leah for years and years, not just a day.

"SETH!" Leah yelled from the hallway, having to shriek in order to attempt to be heard over the din. The music was paused suddenly and I heard the guys chatting. Seth told them to shut up and he called back to his sister.

"Yeah?"

"Keep the music off. We're putting a movie on. Want to join us?"

"Is Holly Chance still there?" called a voice that I thought was Embry.

"Yeah, I am!" I shouted back.

"Well, I want to join you for a movie then," said Embry.

I laughed and I heard feet coming down the stairs. Leah showed me into the sitting room and sat down on the couch, drawing my knees up against my chest. We had decided to watch a good horror film and stuff our faces with popcorn. Leah went to get the food and then the door opened, revealing Embry, closely tailed by Seth and Quil. Jacob wasn't with them. Embry took one of the spaces beside me on the huge couch, looking at the case of the film we were watching. "Ooh, a horror!"

"Don't sound so excited...I don't get scared by films."

Embry grinned. "Damn."

Jacob came into the room, his expression grumpy. "After this film, I think I should probably be going back. I've got stuff to do for the shop."

Seth chucked a pillow at him, "Don't be such a killjoy, Jake. You said you'd stay over."

There was a teasing tone in his voice. Jacob rolled his eyes and sat in a chair opposite me on the sofa.

Leah came back too, armed with three huge bowls of popcorn. "If anyone spills this, then they can pick it all up by themselves one by one. And if, after that, I find one piece of it, I will kill them. Mum would kill me if I trashed the house while she was away." She dimmed the lights and sat down on the floor in front of me. "Start up the movie," she said to her brother, who sighed dramatically.

The film was good. It was pretty creepy, but that sort of thing doesn't freak me out. Embry was pretending to be scared much to my amusement. He was hiding his face in my neck, clutching me in 'terror'. I noticed that Jacob didn't seem to be too amused, unlike the rest of the guys and added party pooper to the growing list of bad things about him. He was making me look like the most exciting person on Earth.

The film finished. I got up and stretched, yawning noisily. "I think I'd better call my dad. I'll be back in a minute."

I went into the kitchen, and called dad from my mobile. He answered after keeping me waiting. "Hello?"

"Hey dad. D'you think you could have answered the phone any slower?"

My dad laughed. "I'm an old man, honey. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. In fact, everything is going really well. It's okay if I stay over at Leah's right?"

"Yeah!" said my dad excitedly.

"It sounds like you're trying to get rid of me," I said teasingly.

"If only I could," he replied, equally teasing. "So, I'll see you tomorrow morning, yeah?"

"Yeah, cool. See you Dad."

"Oh, wait, honey?"

"Uh huh?"

"Billy and Jacob are going to come over tomorrow evening. It's our turn to give them dinner. You can help me make it, alright?"

When my dad asked me for help, I knew it basically meant 'You can do it for me, alright?' I didn't want to. Jacob didn't deserve it. But I liked Billy and it meant something to Dad, so I begrudgingly agreed and hung up the phone.

Back in the lounge, I was met with the sight of all four boys on their hands and knees and Leah standing over them, hands on her hips.

"What the hell?" was all I could manage to say.

"Seth thought it would be funny to test me when I said that I would make him pick up popcorn. Next time, they'll think twice. Won't you boys?" Leah shot a sickly sweet at the four guys on the floor.

They didn't meet her gaze and continued picking up the popcorn that was scattered over the floor.

"And," added Leah, "For every piece of popcorn I find after you say you've finished, I get to break one of your rubbishy CDs. I mean it."

Ignoring Seth's outburst of indignation, Leah climbed over the bodies and pulled me up to her room.

There were loads of the dream catchers that I had seen in her shop hanging all over her ceiling. I had hung mine over my bed, so I could watch it while I slept. I had started to unpack the boxes that were mine that afternoon too. Gradually my bedroom was looking more and more like a place that I could actually stay in, rather than a hospital cubicle. I had drawn on the white walls (my Dad didn't mind _that_ much) doodling crazily...after all – I couldn't let my endless years of art in school go to waste, just because I had decided not to do it at college yet. I stuck posters on the walls (mostly of the music bands that I liked) and, on the west facing wall, were all my Polaroid pictures. I wanted to be a photographer, favouring a job where I could do what I wanted to, like my dad who was a writer.

Leah and I stayed up late, just talking – the usual sorts of things that people talk about when you first meet them; learning what they like, what they do in the spare time, that sort of thing. She was very like me, or at least, like me before my mother had died. Leah had put me in a good mood, and I thought that I could get used to having her around. She told me that the few friends she had made in school all lived in Forks, where the school was. Most of them were going to college and the others were getting jobs. This, Leah told me, meant that she had no one to hang out with in La Push, except Seth and his friends and they couldn't count for much. "There's a very low female birth rate," Leah explained. "There's something in the La Push genes that means that boys get priority." Leah's tone was dark, as though there were more meanings to her words than how they first appeared.


	3. Chapter 3: A Job

**Changes In La Push **

**Chapter Three: A Job**

I left the Clearwater's at twelve o'clock the next day, which was Sunday. I drove slowly home, being extra careful due to having stayed up until very late. I had promised Leah that I would meet her in the shop on Monday, when she got off (and her brother went on) at three o'clock. We had made plans to go into Forks and do some shopping. It had been a long time since I had done the girly sort of shopping that we were going to do. Living with just your dad has some perks – they're generally easy going and you can twist them round your little finger – but it also had disadvantages – you become less feminine and more masculine. For example, I now way preferred baseball to painting my nails, or whatever. I wasn't exactly a tomboy, I _love_ clothes, but I wasn't sissy or fussy. I liked to get stuck into things and get my hands dirty. That sounds so wrong...

At home, (it felt strange to think of the new building as home), I found that Dad had already gone shopping and had unpacked all of the kitchen stuff.

"You've been busy," I said, eyeing the pile of cookbooks that had been piled on the kitchen table. My mother and I had given them to Dad in the hopes that he would actually learn how to cook well with them...to no avail.

"I did it all last night and this morning. You'll have to help me with the lounge. And remember, you promised to do the cooking."

I gave a short, shocked laugh. "I did not! I think you'll find that I said that I would _help_ you do the cooking! You have to at least do a bit of it."

My Dad gave me a pleading look that was supposed to appeal to my better nature. Too bad I didn't have one (mwahaha). I decided to compromise. "Fine. But you get one job...you can mix the drinks or something."

Dad looked pleased and as if he had just won World War Two. "Thanks, honey. I've brought some meat and pasta and stuff. I thought you could make lasagne or something, with some salad.

"So, first you tell me I have to cook, and now you're telling me what to cook?! Dad you could drive a saint crazy."

X

I rolled up my sleeves and gazed around the square room that was going to be the lounge. It was empty except for two couches and a big comfy chair. The hallway and kitchen outside were stuffed with all the boxes that I had just dragged there; I needed more space to decide how to position everything. I had sent Dad upstairs to sort his room out and I knew that this would mean he'd be gone for ages, given that he is completely unable to multitask and was slow anyway.

X

An hour later, I was pleased with how the room was going. I had placed all the furniture and was starting on the smaller objects that made a room look lived in. Our bookshelves that covered one wall were full, which meant that there was now space to walk around the kitchen. Dad had decided that he had finished his room (probably meaning that he couldn't be bothered to do anymore work) and was 'helping' me make the lounge look presentable.

"Why did you invite guests over before we'd even got the house ready?" I moaned grouchily.

Dad just shrugged, which was his way of saying that that problem hadn't occurred to him. He was such a guy.

X

After I had put the food into the oven to finish cooking, I went upstairs to change out of my old trackies that I had put on while I was tidying. I couldn't decide what to wear. I didn't want to appear too overdressed, but I wasn't sure what would be interpreted as being too casual. After far too long of trying to choose an outfit, I picked my usual trusty black skinnies and a big, graphic t-shirt. I kept my hair up in its messy ponytail because it was a warm evening and my thick hair caused unnecessary heat for me.

"Holly, they're here!" my Dad called from downstairs, excitement clear in his voice.

I checked my appearance one more time, then went to join Dad to greet Billy and Jacob.

"Come in, come in," Dad was saying when I arrived. "We're going to have dinner out back in the yard, seeing as it's such a nice evening. Is that all okay with you?"

"That sounds wonderful," Billy replied, while Jacob kept a respectful silence. From my vantage point on the stairs, I could see everything very clearly, including how Jacob winced when he lifted his arm. He rolled back his shirtsleeve and looked at his upper arm, on his bicep. His arm was the same honey tan colour all the way up (looks like someone spent time in the sun with no shirt on). In the middle of his upper arm was a circular tattoo, with a patterned centre. However, the points of the most interest on Jacob's arm were three deep scratches, which looked inflamed and sore. I made a move to come down the stairs, with the idea to help him, or at least ask if he wanted some ointment or whatever. The stair creaked and Jacob looked up to me, pulling his sleeve down quickly at the same time.

"Holly," he said, sounding quite startled.

"Hey Jacob. Are you okay?" I asked, pointing at his arm.

Jacob's eyes shot to his Dad's retreating back, where he was just going out the back door to the garden.

"Sorry...does Billy not know you're hurt?"

Jacob shook his head.

"Come here. I'm going to give you something for it. Alright?"

There was a pause. "I'm okay."

I raised my eyebrows, giving him a lethal stare.

"Fine. But I refused to be bandaged or anything like that."

I rolled my eyes. "I doubt it's that bad."

I pushed him up to the bathroom. "Sit on the bath rim," I instructed, enjoying this new found power over Jacob, who looked exceedingly uncomfortable. I found the antiseptic cream that I had been looking for. I unscrewed the lid and squirted some onto my fingertip. I turned round; about to ask Jacob to roll up his sleeve so I could put the cream onto the cut. But instead of the image I had left behind, I was now greeted with a _shirtless_ man. There was a definite silence, that went on for too long. I mentally recovered from the shock and dragged my eyes from his chest. As I did so, I saw other cuts littered over his otherwise flawless skin.

"What the hell have you been doing?!" I exclaimed, when I saw his back too. "You look like you've just come back from the war..."

"I – I was just...riding my bike and I...fell off. That's all," said Jacob.

I smoothed some cream onto the cuts, noticing the short, sharp intake of breath that was the only indication of any pain. "You know you're not very good at lying to me."

"I'm not lying," Jacob replied, unconvincingly. "I fell off my bike."

I shrugged. "I'm sure you've fallen off your bike, but that's not how you got these beauties. You would've bruised more than anything and you must have been wearing clothes too. They would have protected you more than this. You don't have any cuts on your legs do you?"

"No. They're fine. You're right. I didn't get the cuts when I fell off my bike. I was...fighting."

I snorted. "That sounds so childish when you say it like that."

Jacob tensed up. I was tending to his chest now, so I saw how his eyes darkened too. "It's not funny, Holly."

I was silent. "Will you tell me what happened?"

Jacob shook his head. "I really can't. Not now."

"Do I know who you were fighting?"

Jacob met my eyes. "Maybe."

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"Who was it?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"Because I'm the one who is not patching you up."

Jacob sighed and didn't speak for a while. Eventually he said, "Have you met Paul?"

There had been such a long pause in the talking that I wasn't sure if that meant it was Paul he was fighting with. "Paul Keane?"

Jacob nodded. There was another gap in the conversation. "Did you like him?"

I shrugged. "I don't know...I wasn't talking to him very long." I smiled, remembering our short talk about Jacob.

Said boy noticed the grin. "What's so funny?" When I didn't reply, he frowned. "Tell me!"

I laughed, remembering that I had told Paul that Jacob reminded me of a grumpy spoilt child. He was only proving my theory right. When I stopped my giggling fit, I said, "Sorry, I was just thinking about something funny. It doesn't matter. Paul. He was nice..."

There was a strange look on Jacob's face. I thought he was about to say something, but either I was wrong or he changed his mind. The atmosphere had changed to being decidedly tense for some reason. I wanted to get away from it quickly. It seemed that every time I was alone with Jacob something awkward would happen. "...I should go down and help Dad get dinner ready."

I had decided that this whole bathroom chat was too much to bear.

X

"Holly, this is delicious," said Billy, giving me a sunny smile. "You're a much better cook than Jacob."

I blushed at the comparison. I don't think that things could get much more awkward, but I wasn't prepared to test that theory.

"Phil, I wanted to go fishing tomorrow. Want to join me?" Billy asked Dad.

"Well...it's been a while since I went fishing...I'll probably be a bit rusty. What time do you want me over?"

I rolled my eyes at how unsubtle my Dad was being. He was obviously jumping at the chance to go out with his friend.

"Shall we say one o'clock? I'll get Tom Clearwater, Frank Reed and Lou Goldsmith along too. It'll be like the old times." Then to me, Billy said, "Have you met Jacob's friends? Not that there's that many to meet." Billy laughed to himself. "Sorry Jake."

Jacob was giving his father death glares, his face slightly red.

Billy continued. "You know Leah, right?"

I smiled and nodded. "Yeah, she's great. I've been round at her place. And Embry's cool too."

Billy nodded. "His father, Lou, used to be one of your Dad's friends too. And Quil's father, Frank. It's funny how our generation were all friends and your generation are too."

I agreed, but saw the odd look Dad, Billy and Jacob all gave each other. I got the feeling that none of them thought that it was very odd at all.

"What was Dad like when he was young?" I asked Billy after a while. Jacob and Dad were talking about Jacob's job in the garage on the High Street.

Billy thought a moment. "Hmm. He was pretty popular. He had lots of girls after him, y'know. But he only had eyes for your mother." Billy's tone had slightly changed. It wasn't exactly bitter, but it might've been regret? "He was really sporty too. There wasn't a man in the town who was faster than your father or could out throw him in baseball. Yeah. Phil was quite the talk of the town. If he had stayed here, he could've gone on to do great things. But he wanted to marry your mother so bad, he moved half way across the country to get her."

"Why didn't he just ask her to live with him here if his life was so great?"

Billy sighed. "Ah, Holly. Back then, in those days, things were different. Lissie wasn't from these parts. She wouldn't have fit in. Your father knew that."

"What do you mean? I'm not really from around here, and I seem to be doing alright."

"La Push is in your blood. You can't escape it! At first, to everyone, La Push seems dull, boring, dead. But when you grow up and learn a bit more, you'll realise that La Push is and will always be your home. One day you'll need La Push and La Push will definitely need you."

I laughed, thinking Billy was joking. "Don't be daft. What good would I be in La Push?"

Billy raised an eyebrow and shook his head. "You would be surprised. But I can see you being here a long time, young lady. And you're important. Don't let anyone tell you otherwise. You're needed here. Remember that."

I was getting slightly creeped out. Billy was turning into some prophet right in front of my eyes. I decided to bring Dad into the conversation to rescue me if I needed it.

"Dad, tell Billy about your new book."

This shows how desperate I was. To get my Dad to talk about his writing was a very desperate move. He wrote thrillers and crime novels that were ridiculously complicated and convoluted. They took forever to explain and were long. Don't get me wrong, they were brilliant and they were good enough to earn Dad enough money to support us and have plenty to spare, but they really weren't my cup of tea. Especially when he insisted on telling me every little plot twist and character profile.

Anyway, that kept Billy (and Dad) quiet for a while, giving me time to think about Billy's words. Why would La Push need me? Why was I so important? I racked my brains for an explanation, but I couldn't find one. Billy had only known me for a few days and I hadn't spoken to him that much. He didn't know, so how could he possibly be predicting the future?

X

Billy and Jacob left at ten. There was still some dusky light outside, but I told Dad that I was going to bed. I was still exhausted from staying over at Leah's place. I lay on my bed, looking up at my ceiling. I had covered the ceiling with the fluorescent, glow in the dark stars that Mum had given my when I was little and scared of the dark. She said that whenever I needed her, I could look into those stars and find her. I missed her a lot.

X

Over breakfast, Dad said, "You should get a job."

"What?"

"You need a job. Like Jacob's at the garage. You're going to get bored around here if you don't have something to do. Most of the kids around here have one. In fact, doesn't Leah work in her parents' shop? It would be good for you."

"Yeah, she does. But why are you asking me all this now?"

"I heard on the grapevine that Mr Sharp was looking out for anyone who wanted to help him in the garage store. Just as a receptionist / organiser type job. Apparently it gets quite busy in the garage with just him and Jacob. Lots of the young guys have motor bikes and Jacob always ends up having to fix them."

I rolled my eyes. "So that's what you were talking to Jacob about last night."

Dad looked defensive. "Jacob suggested the job."

"He did?"

"Yeah, sure. He said, 'If Holly's looking for a job, then Johnny Sharp was looking for someone'. So I told him I'd run it past you."

"I don't know much about bikes. I can drive one, yes, but ask me to name any of the parts and I'd be stuck."

"You don't need to know anything about them. You just need to take calls and deliver stuff and sort out timetables. You'd be fine at that. And you forget that you'd be earning money."

I realised that the job sounded easy enough. I needed to find out more though, so I told Dad that I would go check it out with this Johnny Sharp later. I brightened, thinking I might call on Leah too.

X

I made my way to the High Street just after lunch. There were more people out and about than last time I had been there. The whole style of the town was much like my own – a combination of indie, American Indian and punk. The garage was open, I could see the door open from where I was, so I didn't hurry. Instead, I called in at Leah's first.

"Hey," she said, from her stool behind the counter. "What are you up to?" She was keeping a watchful eye on her brother, who was cleaning around the shelves. He didn't look entirely happy about it.

"I'm going to the garage. My dad's making me get a job. Johnny Sharp wants someone to help out round there."

Leah gave me a sly grin. "Jacob works there. You two sure see a lot of each other. Is there anything I should know?"

I saw Seth look up, a curious look on his face.

"_No_," I said, definitely. "No, no, no. I don't know him well enough anyway. He doesn't seem to be that keen on me so it might make things a bit weird if I suddenly declared my undying love for him, don't you think?"

"Just a bit," Seth muttered. Leah shot him a look.

"Whatever. I need to do some matchmaking. You're new meat...the boys will be queuing up for you once you get yourself out there a bit. Wow, I'm making you sound pretty ho-ish aren't I? Sorry."

There was a pause.

"A-a-anyway..." I said, chickening out, "I'm just going to go to the garage then. I'll come back here after if that's okay?"

"Sure," said Leah. "Let's go to the lake again. We'll take food and some drink this time. Picnic dinner sound good?"

We made our plans and I said that this time, Leah could come back to mine. Dad wouldn't mind, I knew. In fact he'd probably sleep through all our noise.

X

The garage door was open, so I went in there rather than the administration building next to it.

Jacob was shirtless (again), on one of those trolley things underneath a raised car. He had a light sheen of sweat on his muscled torso that I thought wouldn't have looked out of place in the bedroom. I halted in my tracks, appalled and embarrassed at what I had just thought. I was scared that someone had decided that mind reading was possible. I accidentally kicked a spanner that was lying on the floor. It spun in circles, making a loud harsh noise.

Jacob looked up. "Oh, hey Holly," he said and turned his gaze back to the underneath of the car above him. "Guess your dad told you about the job then?"

"Yeah," I said. "Where is this Johnny Sharp?"

Jacob put down the tool he was holding and pushed himself and the trolley out from the car. "He's in the office. Come on, I'll take you there."

X

The office was quite small, but light and clean. There was a desk by the window, at which sat a tall, thick set man, who wore oil covered overalls. He seemed to sense me and Jacob approaching and looked up. His eyes were grey and sparkling, seeming to pierce right through me. He stood up and extended his hand to me.

"Johnny Sharp. You're Holly aren't you?"

I shook his hand, shook it and nodded. "That's right. I've heard that you have a job vacancy going?"

X

Sometime later, I was familiarizing myself with the documents and computer at the garage office. It was very simple and I knew I wouldn't have a hard time of it. I only had to come into the office from Monday to Friday and only from ten 'til four, with a hour lunch break in the middle. So, it wasn't like I would be overworked.

At twelve thirty, Jacob came into the office from the main workshop.

"We can have an hour for lunch now. Do you want me to take you to the café?"

I smiled gratefully. "Yes please." As if to accentuate this request, my stomach rumbled loudly. I flushed red…embarrassing!

Jacob chuckled. Typical, he laughs at me, not with me. Sometimes, I don't know why I bother.

I followed him out the office and into the main garage. I saw Johnny's legs sticking out from beneath a car. Jacob called out to him and told him that we were going out for our lunch.

It was a nice day outside. The sky was a deep clear blue and the sun was beating down strongly. The café was at the opposite end of the street, so it didn't take long to get there.

Jacob held the door open for me, putting me slightly off with the gentleman-ly manners. We sat at a window table and studied the menu.

"What can I get you?" said a young male voice. I looked up from the menu. I saw two things. One, another gorgeous guy (seriously do they breed fit men here?), armed with a notepad and pen, waiting for my order, staring straight into my eyes. Two, Jacob was sitting ramrod straight, an ugly grimace on his face. If I didn't know any better, I could have sworn he was even growling deep down in his throat.

"Paul," said Jacob.

The guy looked at Jacob for the first time. "Jacob."

"Why are you here?"

"You know I work here." Paul said, with a cheeky amused smirk.

"I meant, why are you standing here, serving? We had a deal." Jacob was obviously annoyed, because he was talking through gritted teeth, not looking the guy in the eye.

"But Jake, you have company!" Paul said, turning his blazing green eyed gaze back to me.

I blushed. Wait…I blushed?! I realised I should probably say something. "Well, it's nice to meet you," I said eventually. Paul's gaze was burning me but I just couldn't look away either.

"As much as I am enjoying this little chat, I really think you should just take our order and go alright?" said Jacob.

I looked at him. Why did he hate this guy so much?

But Paul didn't look concerned at all. "Now, now Jacob. Control your temper!"

Jacob was gripping the table so tightly that his knuckles were stark white against his tanned skin.

"What can I get you Holly?" Paul asked me, turning his back to Jacob. I pointed out the salad I wanted. He wrote in down in his book. I watched him carefully. He finished writing down the order and his eye flicked up and caught my gaze. He winked at me and turned back to Jacob and got his order too. He left soon after that and I watched his retreating (muscular) back. I turned back to Jacob after Paul went through some double doors that I assumed led to the kitchen. It was only then that I turned my gaze back to Jacob. He was looking at me, a thoughtful look on his face. It faded quickly when he saw me looking at him.

"I'd forgotten you had already met Paul," said Jacob.

"Why do you hate him?" I asked boldly.

"Hate is a strong word," he said diplomatically. I could tell he was just stalling for time though.

I rolled my eyes. "Why do you hate him?" I repeated.

Jacob slightly squirmed in his seat. "I can't tell you right now."

I brightened. "You'll tell me later?"

"Later as in indefinite time period later, yes."

I scowled. "Fine."

There was a silence. I twiddled my thumbs, not really sure what to say after I had seen all that.

"So…what do you for fun around here?" I asked him after a little while longer.

He seemed relieved that I had dropped the previous subject because he grabbed onto the new conversation quickly. "Well, I do work at the garage a lot because I enjoy doing that. Then, if I'm not at the garage, then I'm at home working on more bikes. Or I hang out with Seth, Embry and Quil too. La Push isn't exactly the most exciting of towns really, is it?" He grinned ruefully. "I suppose it's quite different from where you used to live, isn't it?"

I laughed. "It's so different! Like, the amount of people who live in the whole of La Push is basically the amount of people who live in like two blocks in New York. It was really weird on the first day…you get really used to the noise of traffic and the people when you live in a big city, so when you go somewhere really quiet…it's like it's louder when it's silent than when it's louder. But I'm getting used to it now I think. So, you've always lived here then?"

Jacob nodded. "Yup, born and raised here. And so were all my family before that."

"Really? No-one has moved at all?"

"Nope. My family were Native American Indians, so my family tree in La Push can be traced really far back."

"Yeah, that makes sense, my dad is part American Indian too, right?"

"That's right. Your family and my dad's family were pretty close before he moved away," said Jacob.

"I find it weird how my dad moved away in the first place, if he loves this place so much," I mused, not really directing the question at Jacob. However, I could see his gaze turn slightly shifty when I mentioned this. I narrowed my eyes questioningly. "You know?"

"No, not really," said Jacob. "I mean, no, I really don't. It's none of my business anyway."

I shook my head, having none of it. "Jacob Black, what are you not telling me?"

Jacob gave a heavy, laboured sigh. "Look, it's just what I've heard from conversations, but I think it has something to do with your dad being with your mum."

There was a slightly uncomfortable silence. "Oh, right."

Jacob sighed. "I'm not supposed to know. I just heard our dad's talking about it one night. Basically, your dad's parents didn't want him to marry your mother. There was some sort of deal or something, but your dad had to move out of La Push if he wanted to marry her."

"Wow," I said quietly. "He must have loved her a lot to have moved out of his home for her, right?"

Jacob nodded sympathetically.

Our food came, but it wasn't Paul serving. "Now can you tell me why you hate Paul?"

Jacob rolled his eyes. "No."

I gave him puppy dog eyes and my bottom lip poked out.

He sighed. "Normally we agree to disagree and stay the hell away from each other. I don't like his attitude and he doesn't appreciate mine. So it's easier for everyone for us to stay away from each other."

I raised my eyebrows. "That sure sounds like hate to me."

"Maybe it is," said Jacob. "But if you take my advice, you'll stay away from him, okay?"

"He's that bad?"

Jacob nodded. "He doesn't care about what's best for other people. He just knows what he wants."


End file.
